‘Govt. has again teamed up with terrorists’

A: We entered the fray to ensure democracy in the country. Unlike a local poll, a province is big. Also, the three districts in the east have a high percentage of UNP voters. We have to give them a political voice.

The economy is on a permanent slide since this government came into office. Democracy is almost dead with the international community just about to declare us a pariah state with no respect for universal standards of good governance or human rights. There is growing unemployment and an unbearable cost of living thanks to the UPFA’s imprudent polices.

Also, the government is trying to cover its many sins by holding a poll in the east. That’s this government’s way of demonstrating to the international community that democracy is indeed at work and to justify the militarisation of Sri Lanka.

We have to put an end to this. That’s why the UNP is in the provincial battle.

A: Our Political Affairs Committee went into this issue when the Batticaloa local poll was announced. We knew armed groups were being openly aided by the government and knew it would not be a fair poll. The conduct of the poll and the results were a foregone conclusion.

We still believe that our non-participation was the correct decision. In fact it fooled this government so much that they quickly announced a provincial election thinking that we would not contest yet again. The government believed it would be a cakewalk for them as the UNP would not be in the race.

We are running and we intend offering stiff competition this time. We will also not allow the government to justify all its excesses by holding elections in areas that are yet to recover from the horrors of war.

A: Do not forget that the UPFA won the 2005 election through fraudulent means. Voters were prevented from voting as part of an understanding with the LTTE and to get such support, the UPFA hierarchy had bribed the LTTE. This was laid bare by UPFA campaigners like Mangala Samaraweera and the late Sripathi Sooriyaarachchi, not us. Isn’t it a devastating fact that only the current political leadership in the country had ever joined hands with the LTTE, resorted to bribing a terrorist organisation and through corruption and malpractice has come to power? In my estimation, he (the President) has no right to occupy that seat.

This also must be the only government in Sri Lankan history to have struck a shameless deal with a terrorist organisation that it professes to fight, just to ensure an electoral victory. That too, while maligning the UNP and its leader for alleged sympathy and deals with the LTTE.

The withdrawal from the Batticaloa race was a ‘tactical withdrawal.’ Such things are done in politics. The government was lulled into a false sense of political security thinking that the UNP won’t run for office. Now there is no turning back for the UPFA.

Don’t forget that the UNP is known for holding elections and for contesting elections amidst all odds. We have protected the democratic process despite huge challenges and made massive sacrifices. Many of our leaders have fallen prey to the LTTE bombs and guns. Some 6,500 UNP supporters were killed by the JVP. Through it all, we have remained the most formidable political force in the country.

It is also the UNP that changed the destiny of Sri Lanka. We gained political independence for this nation and brought economic advancement through liberal economic policies. Our leaders died while campaigning, addressing people or walking alongside them. We have a political heritage unlike any other.

As for the ground level situation, nothing has improved. We only withdrew from the previous race to allow the government to have a false start.

The government is striving to install a non-existing democracy. The government is most likely to resort to terror tactics and if the need rises, we will face them, unfazed.

A: We have kept the international community, human rights, civil and political rights organisations informed about the conduct of Pillayan and his acolytes. They are far from a democratic political force. The Batticaloa local poll was extremely corrupt. The fear psychosis was created long before the poll was held, and it was known how it was going to be conducted and what the expected result was to be.

We saw JVP’s K. D. Lalkantha who represents a party that worked for the UPFA’ electoral success in 2005 calling for Pillayan’s disarmament and blaming the government for allowing the group to bear weapons.

In contrast, the government members are busy whitewashing Pillayan’s sins and claiming that the ‘boys’ are in the process of being reintegrated into society. Interesting to find a government defending a terrorist outfit so openly. We can’t imagine that our President and his government are in an alliance with terrorists.

A: No. Candidates are provided with only two policemen. There are no back-up vehicles despite some of our candidates being high profile politicians. The government candidates of course have back-up vehicles, escorts from not just the police but also the army. Then there are Pillayan’s men openly carrying weapons.

The question is, why is it that Pillayan and his men need to be armed when the east has been militarily cleared? What do they have to fear if the rule of law had been restored and the LTTE cadres banished? Then pray, tell us why this gun-totting group has to continue with their weapons?

I strongly feel this is being allowed for a reason. The so-called clearing of the east must be false government propaganda. This government does everything for political expediency. The clearing of the east too must be a fabrication just to make the Sinhalese feel that the warriors have returned to unify the country. ‘Clearing’ should be manifest in the peaceful backdrop that prevails. It is not a political statement but a reality that people can sense and feel.

By endorsing Pillayan’s claim that they are under the LTTE’s threat, the government has inadvertently let the truth out — that the east is not secure and all along, they have been playing politics than waging war.

A: Let me reverse this question. Is this government so bankrupt that it is run by a group of UNP defectors who are known for their mediocrity and duplicity?

As opposed to that, the UNP has the formula the people need. Every time the SLFP-led governments destroyed the economy and made people starve, as they are doing today, it is the UNP that filled their stomachs and their pockets. This is undisputed political history.

It is prudent strategy to work with political parties willing to work with an inclusive party like ours. The SLMC is a formidable force and we see eye-to-eye on the national question. Together we can form an alliance that can deliver and bring prosperity to the east. Not just the SLMC, the UNP will work with any party that is committed to democracy, good governance and development. Sri Lanka needs an urgent effort to rebuild it in every way. Let the process begin with the east.

A: There has to be the freedom to campaign, particularly in an area that is newly cleared. What the government is indirectly saying is that it cannot offer security after twilight. Only daytime security is possible. Has there ever been a worse insult to the armed forces than this?

If the east is truly cleared, then night campaigning should not pose a concern. Generally we campaign in the evenings because by then, people are able to attend meetings. During the day, they are busy working.

A: The government has made an imprudent decision. We said the region needed to have its democratic institutions fully functional and people settled for elections to be held. But the government is waging a different kind of war to win the appreciation of the international community. For this, they need to show that areas once under LTTE control have been recaptured and democracy restored. That’s what is happening today. That’s why there are ill-planned elections in alliance with terrorist outfits.

But the government miscalculated by thinking that the UNP would be out of the race. We will soon prove how stupid the government has been.

A: It is a terror group sponsored by the government. The government funds it, provides security, vehicles, escorts and anything else they require or demand. Together they also kill people in the name of politics and terrorise civilians.

Pillayan does it in the east and the likes of Nishantha Gajanayake do the same in Colombo. Both groups are aided and funded by the government.

Batticaloa local poll was a corrupt one. There was a low turn out, but they managed to win through terror tactics. People detest Pillayan but can’t openly show opposition fearing his guns and bombs. He has terrorised people and how can there be public acceptance for a man like that?

I am confident that this time around, the people of the east, especially the Tamils will have the courage to reject Pillayan. They should do it for their own future.

A: The UNP has never lied to the people. We have accepted huge political challenges and faced them. Many are the sacrifices we have made during the 60 odd years of its existence in the name of democracy.

It is the UNP that cleared the east. Our Leader, Ranil Wickremesinghe was in the Security Council then. We held elections, brought prosperity to the area and helped rebuild the lives of the eastern people. Then we set up the civil administration.

The UNP never struck electoral packages with the LTTE or any other terrorist outfit. We took time to clear the east and to put in place the state machinery. We have worked with the people and protected their rights. We are not a party like the SLFP. This shameless government has ministers making a quick buck through the Polonnaruwa rice mills while making the populace starve.

A: There were some teething problems that created a situation where it was not fully implementable. The local reaction was devastating. Then there was the sending away of the IPKF that further complicated the situation.

There need not be any doubt about the UNP’s commitment to power sharing. It is we who introduced and fostered this concept and took that vital step forward while others were playing politics with the national question. For this commitment, our Leader Ranil Wickremesinghe had been repeatedly abused, but the UNP’s stance remains unchanged.

The UNP is the only party that can solve this problem. We are the only party that has the necessary vision and commitment to achieve that. At the right time, we will go beyond the present power sharing mechanisms and create a system that works and is acceptable to all people. Only the UNP has the foresight to end ethnic strife through a political solution.

A: We have great faith in our ability to win this election. Also, we believe the conditions have been created for this. The government has been steadfastly digging its own grave which is of political benefit to us.

But we know that a desperate government like this will do the utmost to prevent our victory. The funds and weapons will all be utilised to keep us under check.

The eastern population is burdened by the impact of the war and the soaring cost of living. President Rajapakse has ruined the eastern economy. We believe the eastern voters will give the red light to this useless administration.